“You think it’s B? I’m pretty sure it’s C.”

“No way. It’s totally B.”

“ R e a l l y ? Why?”

“Put down your clicker and I’ll show you.”

A crowd of nearly 150 students sits in a campus lecture hall at 7:50 A.M. on a Th ursday, but despite the early hour, the classroom is packed and nearly all the students are wide awake and clutching brightly colored devices that resemble remote controls. After a few minutes of discussion, the two undergraduate students, Jessica and Lynsie, come to an agreement, point their devices at a small box near the upper corner of the hall, and thirty seconds later, they smile and give each other a quiet high-fi ve when they learn they were correct.

Similar scenarios occur frequently in each of the Physics 7A lectures. Following up on a successful campus pilot program, the Physics Department decided to implement an interactive learning process called “Personal Response Systems” or “clickers.” Th anks to the successful implementation of this technology, all introductory physics classes are now using a historically passive device—the remote control—to improve active participation between instructors and students, enhance collaboration between classmates, boost attendance, and revitalize the traditional learning experience.

A Real Conversation with 200 StudentsAs with many introductory science classes, the Physics 7 series is taught in large lecture

halls that hold hundreds of students at one time. With so many students, it is a chal-lenge to ensure that the majority of the class understands what is being discussed. Use of the Personal Response System helps bridge this gap, as even the quietest, shyest students tend to use their clickers. “Th e use of clickers has given me the chance to par-ticipate more frequently than I would in a regular classroom,” says Abhi Kalavapudi, an undergraduate majoring in Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior.

Th is direct, instantaneous feedback from everyone in class proves useful to instructors. “It gives me the only way I have found to carry on something like a real conversation with 200 students,” says David Webb, a lecturer in the Physics Department.

Students seem to appreciate the immediate follow-up when dealing with particularly diffi cult concepts. “I like the way the professor talks through the incorrect answers and explains why they aren’t right when there are too many people who didn’t agree on the

At Japan’s Hosei University, Professor Ta-shikazu Takao writes the words “Synoptic Gospels” on a digital whiteboard. Th e board can detect his pen movements and then digitally transmit the data in real-time to a screen in UC Davis’ Olsen Hall. “Th is is real secret agent stuff ,” explains Bill Sykes, a technician from Classroom Technology Services. Impressive as the technology is, this isn’t a James Bond movie, but rather, “Humanities 250: Christianity in Japan dur-ing the Asian-Pacifi c War and the Post-War Period,” taught live to UC Davis students by a professor in Tokyo, Japan.

As class begins, the UC Davis students scan each of the four large monitors that hang around the classroom. Two display the UC Davis classroom and the other two focus on the professor sitting at his desk in Japan. In the front of the room a huge screen displays PowerPoint presentations by students from both locations and also displays what the professor writes on his digital white-board.

“ C a n someone def ine the word canon?” asks professor Takao. Th e camera angle immediately switches to a live shot of the Japanese college students, who are uniformed and seated in rows. In stark contrast to the in-formal feeling of the UC Davis classroom, the Japanese classroom is a bright white auditorium glowing with halogen lights.

Bill Sykes quietly moves in and out of the room throughout the class, changing camera angles, monitoring connections, and even setting up additional hardware for an upcoming videoconference that will be transmitted to China. When everything is stable, he heads down to the basement where

Videoconference technology made it possible for UC Davis students to take a course taught at Hosei University in Tokyo, Japan.

“You think it’s B? I’m pretty

your clicker and

A crowd of nearly 150 students sits in a campus lecture hall at 7:50

on a Th ursday, but despite the early hour, the classroom is packed and nearly all the students are wide awake and clutching brightly colored devices that

How are instructors using “Personal ResponseSystems” to get students toparticipate in class? See below

Pharming? Phishing? Cookie? Test your computer security knowledge with the IT Times crossword puzzle. Page 4

STUDYING ABROAD BY STAYING PUT

Clicking to LearnInteractive Learning Technology Improves Class Participation, Attendance

Are your neighbors fi lching your home wireless Internet connection? Page 3

When Lana Dancy begins her Ban-ner training course in Hoagland 130

for a small group of testers from the Offi ce of the University Registrar, two projectors beam light onto the wall behind her. It is a Th ursday in March and for most of the attendees this will be their fi rst glimpse of Banner 7 software. As designated testers, it is their job to provide feedback to help fi ne-tune the system before its launch over Labor Day weekend, September 2-4, 2006.

When the group begins the log-in process, it is immediately clear the new soft-ware is diff erent from the current version. Rather than accessing Banner via Citrix (a software interface), the group instead opens Internet Explorer and navigates to a Web page. A plug-in launches a page that asks each user for their UC Davis log-in identifi -cation, Kerberos password, and the password provided by their hard token—a special security device that generates a one-time password. Th e testers are then taken into a test version of Banner 7.

Th e projectors at the front of the room now display the current and new Banner versions. Banner 6, on the left, sud-denly looks dated—vaguely resembling a Windows 95 interface—whereas Banner 7 looks up-to-date, with a larger viewing area, navigation tabs that resemble something you might fi nd on Amazon.com, and a menu that looks similar to Microsoft Word. Holding the mouse over one of the icons at the top of the page reveals a pop-up bubble that describes the icon’s function. Dancy directs the group to open one of the forms; the testers dive in and explore Banner 7’s new features.

What Is Banner?Banner is the main software interface for controlling and organizing vast amounts of student data, everything from admis-sion information to course enrollment, fi nal grades, and fi nancial aid. In use since 1993, UC Davis launched Banner 6 in 2000. Th e current upgrade to Banner 7 is needed in

������������

����������������� ������������

����

�������������

Banner Student Information System Will Get Fresh Upgrade in September

Singing the Praises of EducationResults from the fall podcasting pilot show an overwhelming preference for downloading lectures as MP3 files rather than checking out audio cassettes. For more details,

see page 4.

PODCASTING PILOT

� � � � �IT I n f o r m a t i o n T e c h n o l o g y N e w s f o r t h e U C D a v i s C o m m u n i t y

S p r i n g 2 0 0 6

1 2

3

4 5 6

7

8

9 10

11

12

13 14 15

16

17 18 19

20

21

22

23 24 25

26

27

28

29

Created with EclipseCrossword - www.eclipsecrossword.com

For years, many UC Davis faculty members have recorded their lec-tures onto trusted, albeit now outmoded audiocassettes and made

them available for students to check out. New technology and emerging corporate partnership options are presenting new opportunities for how lectures-on-demand, via the Internet, might benefi t education.

At the beginning of this year, iTunes U, a partnership between Apple and a handful of universities around the country, began distributing lectures and other academic recordings online exclusively through

Apple’s iTunes. Around the same time, the pilot program began acquiring national attention, Bob Ono, UC Davis’ IT Security Coordinator, made an inquiry to Apple regarding iTunes U and the possibility of UC Davis creating its own program.

The iTunes U ProgramIn the simplest of terms, the iTunes U interface is much like Apple’s popular iTunes Music Store, but without the 99-cent fee for downloads. Th e iTunes U software organizes a uni-versity’s audio, text, and multimedia fi les and makes them available to faculty and students at no charge. Using the free iTunes U software, students can download content to their PCs or Macintoshes. Th ey can then listen or view the content from their computers, or transfer that content to an iPod. Everything from slides and PowerPoint presentations to recorded lectures, and videos of featured guest speakers can be made available online through iTunes U.

UC Davis WorkgroupA group of university members met recently to start addressing the pros and cons of iTunes U and ask questions that focus on UC Davis-specifi c needs. How would UC Davis benefi t from a partnership with Apple? How will faculty react to iTunes U? How would students and

Continued on page 2 Continued on page 3 Continued on page 3

Continued on page 4

UnUndergraduates Lynsie Seely and Jessica

Alonso use “clickers” to respond to a question in Physics 7A.at

2 IT Times • Spring 2006

For all your cyber security needs, visit the Computer and Networking Web site. security.ucdavis.edu

Personal Response Systems are de-signed to encourage every student to participate in class by way of

a remote control or “clicker.” At differ-ent points throughout the lecture, the instructor presents students with a mul-tiple-choice question; the students then decide their response, point their click-ers at one of the small infrared boxes installed in the classroom, and click the button that corresponds to their an-swer. A software program compiles the answers and a graph detailing student responses is projected onto the screen for the entire class to see. The correct response is also highlighted, so the stu-

dents know if they are on the right track. The instructor is immediately aware of any concepts or topics that may need further discussion or clarifi cation. Each student enrolled in a class using the re-sponse system purchases a clicker at the bookstore (prices range from $25 to $30). Students then register their click-ers with the professor so their student identifi cation numbers will be recog-nized and recorded when they answer questions. Individual responses are not displayed to the class, but are recorded for the instructor’s use (for example, to track attendance). Learn more at cts.uc-davis.edu/prs/index.htm.

Clickers in the Lecture HallAn Interview with Physics Instructor Randy NelsonWhat teaching goals did you have in mind when utilizing the clickers and interactive quizzes in your classes? My intent was to make this much more interactive and participatory than a standard lecture. An important prerequisite to this was that the text material be read prior to class. So I used the clickers early each day to see what level of understanding had been achieved just by reading. I also used them to keep people awake and (hopefully) interested. I designed the clicker questions to force discussion and group interaction. I would estimate that attendance was signifi cantly higher because of the clickers.

How do you utilize the feedback/answers provided by the students’ use of the clickers? I used the results of the fi rst few questions to see how much introductory material could be glossed over if it appeared the students already had a good grasp of it. Later questions showed whether further discussion or elaboration of that particular topic was necessary. It was a waste of all our time to continue with a topic that greater than 80 percent of the students understood.

In what ways do you feel the implementation of the interactive quizzes was successful? Attendance, interaction, and alertness were much improved because of the clickers. Th e immediate feedback was invaluable.

Describe some of the challenges you’ve experienced with using the clickers/quizzes. Th e single biggest challenge was that some clickers did not seem to work during the lecture. Because this represented fi ve percent of the fi nal grade, I couldn’t ignore this issue. Th e only work-around was to have students sign in manually. Th e amount of time spent with the clicker data was quite high—dozens of hours over the quarter. Most students (probably over 75 percent) failed to follow the detailed and precise instructions to register their clickers, forcing me to input their data manually.

Any recommendations to other instructors who are considering the use of this type of interactive learning? Do it! But have a plan for dealing with forgotten/malfunctioning clickers and have a registration system that automates the process.

Any additional comments? I hope the students found using the clickers to be worthwhile and maybe even a bit fun.

correct answer,” says Jessica Alonso, who ispursuing a double major in Psychology and Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior.

System Encourages AttendanceAgain proving that the best way to learn a subject is by teaching it to someone else, the Physics 7 students seem to understand key concepts more thoroughly because they need to explain their reasoning to their fellow classmates. Th ey are often encouraged by the instructor to collaborate before responding. “When my neighbor and I disagree on the answer, we each have to fi gure out an expla-nation to defend the answer we’ve chosen, which forces a little more thinking on the subject at hand,” shares Alonso.

Students and Instructors Stay EngagedTh e interactive nature of the clicker questions, which are typically sprinkled throughout the lecture, keeps students and the instructor ac-tively involved in the learning experience. Since the clicker responses are automatically catalogued, instructors can easily track who

is coming to class and how often they are participating. Students are well aware of this fact, and so empty seats at lecture are a rarity. “Th e use of clickers has improved my atten-dance,” reveals Kalavapudi. “I think that the more interactive classrooms get, the more students can come out learning, rather than the conventional methods 10 to 20 years ago. On the whole, clickers as an interactive tool can help stimulate even the non-motivated students in the classroom.”

Webb points out that instructors will initially have to invest some time preparing for lectures. “Writing good questions takes time and experience,” explains Webb, “and planning the lecture takes some extra thought.” Students also don’t like having to buy the remotes, which are used only for a few classes. However, the Physics Department has worked with the vendor and the UC Davis Bookstore to provide mail-in rebates that cover a majority of the cost.

Mindful of these challenges, instructors like Webb plan to continue using the Personal Response System. “A professor in the Physics Department once said, ‘A lecture can be a magical event where words that are written in the professor’s notes appear in the student’s notes without passing through the brains of either,’ ” says Webb. “Th is is what I hope to avoid with the clickers. Let’s get everyone’s brain into gear.”

Technology Engages Students

cro

ssw

ord

See page 4 for the Cyber Security Crossword Puzzle

After the allotted time has expi red, t he tabulat -

ed student responses are shown as a bar graph. The correct response here was chosen by a small percentage of the class, so the instructor immediately knows that more discussion is needed on this topic.

Student uses clicker to answer a question

on screen (the last four digits of the student’s identifi er appear at the bottom of the screen as confi rmation the student’s response was recorded).

CLICKING TO LEARNContinued from page 1

so

lve

d

The lower screen begins to fi ll with response

confi rmations as time winds down.

Classroom Technology Services, in conjunction with the Offi ce of the University Registrar, has installed Personal Response System equip-

ment in several classrooms. Systems are installed in 55 Roessler Hall, 66 Roessler Hall, and 106 Olson Hall. Faculty and staff interested in using a Personal Response System can obtain more information—including best practices and links to examples of Personal Response System use at other campuses—at cts.ucdavis.edu/prs

ment in several classrooms. Systems are installed in 55 Roessler Hall, 66 Roessler Hall, and 106 Olson Hall. Faculty and staff interested in using a Personal Response System can obtain more information—including best practices and links to

Since the clicker responses are automatically catalogued, instructors can easily track who is coming to class and how often they are participating.

LEARN MORE ABOUT

1

2

CLICKERSHOW

work

3

PERSONAL RESPONSE SYSTEMS 1 2

3

4 5 6

7

8

9 10

11

12

13 14 15

16

17 18 19

20

21

22

23 24 25

26

27

28

29

K

E

R

B

E

R

O

S

A

T

T

A

C

H

M

E

N

T

I

E

F

G

P

B

L

I

N

F

E

C

T

I

O

N

H

I

J

A

C

K

I

N

G

L

A

A

C

S

H

T

T

P

S

T

T

R

K

S

E

X

E

U

M

D

P

A

T

C

H

R

R

R

I

O

H

A

A

V

E

V

P

N

O

I

M

D

E

I

G

R

S

P

A

S

S

W

O

R

D

I

R

H

E

S

A

I

D

U

B

I

R

L

R

C

E

S

P

O

O

F

N

E

T

N

T

U

P

G

R

A

D

E

I

T

E

C

O

O

K

I

E

S

C

A

N

N

I

N

G

N

T

P

I

A

Y

A

H

A

C

K

E

R

R

W

O

R

M

L

C

Y

B

E

R

Created with EclipseCrossword - www.eclipsecrossword.com

IT Times • Spring 2006 3

So, you have fi nally gone wireless and embraced computer mobility at home. Unfortunately, you have also exposed

yourself to a myriad of network piggy backers, hackers, and personal-identity predators. Because home wireless users are responsible for their own network security, you should take extra care in protecting your wireless network against everything from neighbors pirating your Internet connection to full-scale identity theft.

Router-side SecurityRouters operate much like the archaic telephone operators of a technologically simpler time: they decide where data will be sent and fi nd the most direct path from one network to another. Th ey also manage the fl ow of online traffi c and function as a bridge that allows information passage to and from your computer.

It is important to ensure your personal information is inaccessible to others and your computer is protected. Here are some suggestions to help safeguard your home computer and wireless network. • Check the reference manual that came

with your wireless router to see what security features are available and how to activate them.

• Secure your network with a complex password by choosing a variety of numbers, letters, symbols, and non-dictionary words. Longer passwords will also increase your security level.

• Do not allow your router to broadcast your network’s Service Set Identifi er

(SSID). Your SSID is the network code that specifi es your own

personal wireless connection. Th e router’s default setting may allow any computer within range of your network to view your SSID, which gives other people the ability to log on

to your network without your knowledge. Preventing open

access to your wireless network will discourage rogue surfers by forcing users to enter the codename.• Implement a Media Access Control (MAC) address fi lter. Every wireless-capable computer has a unique

MAC address that allows you access to your network. Most routers come with a MAC address fi lter that restricts access to just the addresses of your choice, enforcing a very secure method of fi ltration.

• Encrypt the data transferred across your network. Not all routers are encryption savvy, so check for this feature and make sure to activate it.

• If possible, limit the network transmission distance of your wireless router to your apartment or home.

• Visit the manufacturer’s online support page for security information. Most router manufacturers off er tips on security confi gurations for their products, plus information about activating advanced security features. Some manufacturers also off er email support via their Web sites. Th e online support pages may also identify any security patches that need to be applied to your wireless router.

Protecting your computer• Use a software fi rewall. Firewalls included

in your operating system (i.e., Windows XP or OS X), suffi ciently protect your computer. If your computer does not have a software fi rewall, try installing ZoneAlarm by Zone Labs or Norton Personal Firewall by Symantec.

• Be sure to turn off your wireless connection when not in use. Many laptops remain connected to the closest, open wireless network by default.

• Keep your computer’s operating system and applications secure by applying vendor security patches and regularly updating your anti-virus programs.

Only you should decide who is allowed access to your computer. Take the time to guard your information and keep your home network secure. Th e extra barriers you create and precautions you take to build a protected environment for your personal home network and computer will help keep your network connection clear, your personal identity hidden, and your information safe.

order to meet federal requirements for fi nan-cial aid and for the university to continue to receive support from the software’s maker, SunGard SCT.

SunGard SCT may not have the name recognition of a brand like Microsoft, but their Banner student information system is used by many universities across the country. Although SunGard SCT provides the base software for more than 1,000 forms, the UC Davis team has created or modifi ed an additional 400 forms that are unique to the campus.

Immediately, the Banner 7 testers notice that access from a Web browser is a major improvement—the forms can be viewed practically anywhere there is an Internet connection—but the newer version of the software also has additional modifi cations that refl ect new security concerns and chang-ing educational norms. Just some of the new and improved features include: • Concurrent curriculum. Th is feature

supports admission, enrollment, and graduation of a student on an unlimited number of programs, such as degree pro-grams, extension courses, and certifi cate programs.

• Data history. With the addition of Con-current Curriculum tables to Banner, some of the existing data will no longer be overwritten by new entries.

• Protection of personally identifi able information. Th e new system features powerful security measures and improved protection of sensitive biographic and demographic data.

• Multiple identifi cation management.Th is enhancement is designed to prevent the accidental creation of duplicate identifi cations for students.

• New architecture. Banner 7 is now an open API (Application Programming Interface) architecture, which means bet-ter integration with other applications.

• Enhanced user interface. In addition to a larger screen size, which allows more

information to be displayed, Banner 7 contains new fonts, icons, and separator bars plus prompts for labels and fi elds. Keyboard quick keys are also still avail-able.

• Online help. Quick and easy access to on-line support is available via the Internet.

After an hour and a half of exploring the new Banner environment, the session for Offi ce of the University Registrar winds down. As they fi le out the door to head back to their offi ces, Dancy tells them, “Go back and play with it.”

In the following weeks, Dancy will conduct similar sessions for designated testers from the Financial Aid Offi ce, Undergraduate Admissions, and the Offi ce of Graduate Studies. Each offi ce will test the Banner 7 forms specifi c to their unit and provide feedback to the Banner develop-ment team to eliminate software bugs prior to the September launch date. To learn more about the about the Banner upgrade, visit sis.ucdavis.edu/future.htm.

he can monitor all videoconferences taking place, and even troubleshoot them remotely if need be.

Indeed, one can expect some problems to arise when trying to sync this wide ar-ray of techno-gadgets. Professor Tashikazu accidentally mis-spells a word on the digital white-board. “It’s very diffi cult for me to erase this,” he says, shrugging with a chuckle at the camera. Later on, Davis loses the stream of Japan’s PowerPoint presentation, but Bill Sykes has it back within minutes.

To make sure the class runs smoothly, the operation requires a team eff ort. And it is easy to see why the teams go to all the trou-ble. Th e result of topnotch technology and teamwork is astounding. Th e audio and vid-eo quality of videoconferencing has greatly improved since its inception. What used to be delayed and choppy pictures mixed with fuzzy audio that did not sync, is now real-time video synced to pristine audio. Interac-tion between universities becomes a pleasant and enjoyable collaboration.

Although Humanities 250 sounds like a one-of-a-kind course, there are typically four or fi ve videoconferencing courses tak-ing place around UC Davis each quarter. Departments taking advantage of the ser-vice include Animal Sciences, Economics, Nutrition, Biological Sciences, and many others.

Th e beauty of distance learning is in the multicultural nature of collaboration. In ex-change for Professor Takao’s class, UC Da-vis off ered a class on violence in American culture for Japanese and UC Davis students.

Th e course was developed after being spe-cifi cally requested by Hosei University.

Even though Professor Takao is on the other side of the world, it doesn’t mean he is unable to give UC Davis

students their fair share of homework. Since it is diffi cult to fi nd the same text-books in both Japan and the United States, Takao relies on handouts for student read-

ing. Before the videoconferencing class is over for the day, teaching assistants in

Davis pass out a thick photocopied handout, “A History of Christian-ity in Japan,” by Otis Cary, to be read before the extraordinary—and

yet surprisingly ordinary—trans-Pacifi c experience

repeats in just a few days. For a taste of distance-

learning at its fi nest, consider dropping in to see the live action for yourself.

You won’t be disap-pointed.

Preparing for the Banner 7 Upgrade

The Banner Student Information System will be upgraded to Banner 7 overLabor Day weekend, September 2-4, 2006. To help prepare, Banner users are encouraged to check their workstations and to sign up for training.

WorkstationsBanner users are asked to make sure their workstation can access the new system. Web browsers that work with Banner 7 are: Microsoft Internet Explorer 6, Mozilla Firefox 1.0 (Windows) and Safari 1.2 (Macintosh). The new software also has a larger interface, 1024 by 768 pixels, which may not work on 15-inch or some 17-inch monitors. Prior to the implementation, Banner users will be emailed information about how they can install the required plug-in, JInitator. For information about browser requirements and how to check your monitor, visit the Banner 7 Web site. sis.ucdavis.edu/future.htm

TrainingTraining for Banner users starts in late August and early September and will feature two separate courses: an overview class and a hands-on workshop. Classes are open to all Banner users and sign-ups begin in May through Staff Development and Professional Services (sdps.ucdavis.edu). For new Banner users, the last introductory class for the current system, Banner 6, will be held on July 27. The fi rst introductory class for Banner 7 will be held on September 12. For more information about Banner 7 training, contact Lana Dancy, Banner Student Information System Trainer (lrdancy@ucdavis.edu) or visit bannertraining.ucdavis.edu

Wireless at HomeSecuring Your Personal Network

Home wireless users are responsible

for their own network security and

should take extra care protecting

their wireless networks against

everything from neighbors

pirating their Internet connection

to full-scale identity theft.

Most 15-inch and some 17-inch moni-tors do not support Banner 7’s larger 1024 by 768 pixel screen size.

V ideoconf erencingInstructors interested in collaborating with universities across the world, or having colleagues in remote locations speak to their classes via a video feed, should contact Classroom Technology Services (CTS) to discuss options for incorporating these novel forms of technology into future classes. The service is free for any instructor whose course is listed with the registrar, and is available on a fi rst come, fi rst served basis. Videoconferencing for other purposes is also available on a recharge basis. Contact CTS regarding videoconferencing at vtc@ucdavis.edu, or 752-3553. More information is also available at cts.ucdavis.edu/services/vtc.html.

BANNER UPGRADEContinued from page 1

JAPANContinued from page 1

Access from a Web browser is a major improvement—the forms can be viewed practically anywhere there is an Internet connection.

4 IT Times • Spring 2006

1 2

3

4 5 6

7

8

9 10

11

12

13 14 15

16

17 18 19

20

21

22

23 24 25

26

27

28

29

Created with EclipseCrossword - www.eclipsecrossword.com

Across1. Malicious program that spreads from

host to host5. Internet scam that misdirects computers

to fraudulent Web sites7. Also called robots, spiders, and

crawlers8. Electronic version is not made with

ham9. A secret entryway for attackers11. It just looks like a legitimate email

from PayPal baiting you to update your credit card information

12. 1999 email virus allegedly named after an exotic dancer

13. To maliciously modify data16. _______of Service. Attack causing

loss of Web site access to users19. Secure Sockets Layer21. Sneaky marketing software23. Networked communal computer26. ________attack. Uses all phrases or

words in this reference book when trying to crack a password

27. Data distiller28. ________theft.29. Digital________. Electronic John

Hancock

Down1. Virtual Private Network2. Hacker speak for transmission

ventriloquism3. Crawly, self-replicating program

similar to a virus4. Sometimes this virtual package

delivered via email isn’t so friendly6. Domain________. Web site holdup8. Searching for viruses and

vulnerabilities10. To trade up software or hardware11. Operating system band-aid14. A strong one is at least six characters

long and contains numbers, symbols, and upper- and lowercase letters

15. A slang term for a computer enthusiast

17. Use an anti-virus program to prevent ________

18. Specifi es the URL is enhanced by a security mechanism

20. Authentication protocol used to log in to your UC Davis account

22. Morsel that stores information about you on your computer

24. Executable binary fi le25. _______Cafe

Guests Visiting UC Davis? Sign Them Up for Wireless Guest AccessUC Davis faculty and staff can off er their campus guests wireless Internet access. Accounts can be set up for one to seven days, and may be renewed for up to a total of 30 days. To create a guest account, faculty and staff must provide their guest’s name, email address, and phone number. wireless.ucdavis.edu/guestaccess.html

Complimentary Email ForwardingIf you are retiring, graduating, or otherwise leaving the campus, but still wish to re-ceive email from your UC Davis address, you may be eligible for a complimentary service that will forward your UC Davis email to an external address of your choice. emailforwarding.ucdavis.edu/

Campus Printer Repair Service Phased OutCampus Printer Repair (CPR) has notifi ed their existing campus clients that Hewlett Packard printer repair services will be phased out during spring quarter. Repair orders will no longer be accepted after April 14, 2006. A list of local repair vendors will be available on CPR’s Web site after April 14. cpr.ucdavis.edu/

IET Wins Communication Award for Online Grading FlyerIET won a communication award for “Submitting Final Grades Online” a fl yer developed to provide information to faculty about submitting grades online. SIGUCCS sponsors annual communication awards to recognize outstanding publications developed at college and university computing centers. iet.ucdavis.edu/2005_SIGUCCS_Award.html

2006 University of California Computing Sciences ConferenceComputing Services staff and managers throughout the university will be attending the 2006 UC Computing Services Conference, held July 16-18, 2006 at the Price Center on the UC San Diego campus. Th e program features four tracks—security, academic and research, business and fi nance, and emerging technologies—and ex-plores the best in UC Computing Services. Registration information will be available online. uccsc.ucr.edu/

cyber securitycrossword

Highlights from Fall Digital Lecture Pilot

In an eff ort to improve lecture recording and distribution, Information and Educational Technology piloted a digital lecture recording and distribution system during fall 2005. Four classes participated in the pilot, three from the Psychology Department and one

from the Nutrition Department. According to the Report on Fall 2005 Pilot and Winter 2006 Developments: “During winter 2006 quarter Computer Lab Management (CLM) and Mediaworks saw dramatic growth in the number of users of this system. Currently 13 classes use the campus podcast system with nearly 1,200 current users accessing digital lectures.” Th e report goes on to note that a challenge to a full-scale deployment of the digi-tal lecture system is the limited availability and installation of digital recorders. Classroom Technology Services is working with the Registrar to purchase and install permanent digital recorders in ten additional lecture halls over summer 2006. Th e rooms selected were those that currently have cassette recorders. More information about podcasting and the pilot can be found online at podcast.ucdavis.edu, or contact Rodd Kleinschmidt at 752-8121 or rkleinschmidt@ucdavis.edu.

Highlights from the Fall 2005 Pilot

• During fall 2005, MP3 lecture recordings were downloaded by up to 61 percent of the students in a given course. Th e most popular downloads were two review sessions.

• Excluding review session recordings, the download average among the four pilot courses was 25 percent of enrolled students.

• Both digital MP3 recordings and cassette recordings were made of every lecture for Psychology 101. Th e MP3 recordings were downloaded by 43 percent of the enrolled students. Only 2.4 percent of the enrolled students checked out cassettes (7 out of 296), with one student accounting for half of these checkouts.

faculty benefi t from iTunes U in ways that pocasting and the MyUCDavis portal may not provide? What are the copyright issues? Are UC Davis students “digital natives,” (as a University of Michigan offi cial called his own university’s students) and would they take advantage of lectures online? Will students continue to show up for classes or would iTunes U instigate a drop in at-tendance? Even though iTunes U is free, would it create incentive and monetary pressure on students to buy iPods?

Evidence suggests that students would welcome and benefi t from iTunes U. A pilot project conducted this past fall showed a student demand for audio record-ings of lectures online. (See below, left.) Liz Gibson, director of Mediaworks and head of the workgroup, agrees with iTunes U’s potential for enhancing teaching and learn-ing. “Th e ability to easily obtain quality audio recordings of lectures is a tremendous study tool for students. Students often miss key points when taking notes or copying diagrams off the board. To sit back, listen, and absorb the content during the lecture, and then go back and take notes from these recordings is a tremendous learning opportunity that will come to the campus at a minimum cost to us.”

Regarding the possibility of a drop in student attendance, Gibson goes on to say, “Th ose students who choose to skip a lecture on the basis of a recording, will only be hurting themselves, and will quickly learn that it is not nearly the full learning experience that they truly need and should come to expect.”

For Bob Ono, an additional advantage to iTunes U’s potential educational value lies in its ability to direct students towards choosing legal downloads, like those from the iTunes Music Store, over music and movies obtained illegally.

Stay Tuned…While a couple of iTunes U pilot programs have been initiated with other campuses, an offi cial agreement drafted by Apple is still in the works, and if UC Davis participates, the campus would be one of the fi rst fully licensed under the iTunes U system. UC Davis has begun the application process, so a fi nal decision on iTunes U still awaits a verdict. Numerous questions and issues need addressing, and the agreement pre-sented by Apple will help shape the group’s decision in April. For more information on the iTunes U task force, please contact Liz Gibson at 752-3777 or email her at emgibson@ucdavis.edu.

Instructors wishing to enhance their teach-ing by utilizing computer technology can apply for several UC Davis grants. Th e

Undergraduate Instructional Improvement Program Grant (UIIP) has a twice-yearly application deadline, however, other grant applications are accepted year-round. For more information on technology grants available to faculty—including information about how to apply and links to application forms—visit trc.ucdavis.edu/trc/grants/fac-ulty/index.html.

Undergraduate Instructional Im-provement Program Grants (UIIP)Instructional technology is one of this year’s areas of emphasis for UIIP grants, and proj-ects over $500 are encouraged. Th ese grants are intended for: innovations that enhance undergraduate education; projects that enrich the educational experience of undergraduates (especially in large enrollment core courses); and departmental plans to strengthen under-graduate curricula or improve participation in campuswide initiatives. Deadline for spring quarter: Friday, April 21, 2006

Educational Technology Resource Awards (ETRA)Th is grant provides faculty with resourc-es for instructional projects involving technology. Available services include—but are not limited to—digitizing slides, streaming video, and 3D animation. Faculty can also utilize multimedia database instruc-tional software, such as Breeze or Almagest. Upon accepting this award, faculty must be willing to share the end product(s) with other faculty, either within their department or on campus.Deadline: None. Applications are accepted year-round.

UIIP Minigrant ProgramTh e UIIP minigrant is primarily for instructors whose technology projects are of a smaller scope and require immediate fund-ing. Th is grant awards a maximum of $500, to be used for resources such as digital media or software. Financial support for guest lecturers up to a maximum of $250 is also available.Deadline: None. Applications are accepted year-round.

iTunes UContinued from page 1

Educational Technology

forFACULTYGRANTS

a n n o u n c e m e n t s